Warrick dropped the files onto the bed beside him as he threw himself face first onto his bed. He was exhausted. He didn't care if he was hungry or not, he had to get some shut-eye.
Two hours later, blurry eyed; he was sitting in his boxers on top of his kitchen counter. Cold pizza was in one hand, pages from the files in the other.
After only an hour of being dead to the world, he'd awoken. Sleep had eluded him once again as his mind went into overdrive. He hadn't been able to stop thinking about the girl Grissom was so concerned about.
The deeper he dug into the file, the more he realized that Grissom had every right to be concerned. This girl was in trouble with a capital T.
Jumping into the shower after finishing his snack, he began to make a plan. Once out of the shower, he grabbed a duffle bag out of his closet and began to pack. He knew he had to see Grissom immediately.
Ten minutes later, he was knocking on Grissom's door. Gil opened it immediately, gun in hand. He looked more ragged and tried than he had at the office. "Geez, Griss, don't ya ever sleep?"
"Not lately." Gil gave him a half smile as he stepped back to allow Warrick in. "What about you? What are you doing here? I sent you home to sleep."
"I did...sort of." Warrick explained as he shrugged out of his jacket. "Couldn't stop thinking after a while, so I got up and read your files. Your girl is in serious trouble."
"Yes, she is." Gil agreed in a hushed tone. Warrick frowned at that until an understanding dawned on him. "Shit Gris, she's here?"
"Yeah." Gil shrugged, shuffling over to the couch. "But she can't stay here."
"Of course not!" Warrick hissed, lowering his voice in respect for the woman. "You're in that file. They'll figure it out. They'll come for her here."
"I take it you' re here because you are agreeing to help me?" Grissom looked up hopefully at the younger man. He read the answer in his face and winced. "I need you to get her away. Quickly."
"Where?"
Once again, Gil winced. "That'll be up to you. I can't know. Not until I figure out how to stop this." Gil watched as Warrick paced the floor in front of him.
"You want me to go out blind?" Warrick paused to look at his boss.
"No, I bought a couple of track phones. We can contact one another if the need arises. "Pulling the phone out of the bag on the coffee table, he typed in the number. "It's registered under an alias. It tells you who is calling if the number is already logged in. So you'll always see when I'm the one calling. Don't go answering it unless you know its me." He showed the display to Warrick, 'BUGMAN'. Warrick snickered as he took the phone.
"Got it." He pocketed the phone. "What about my phone?"
"Keep it with you. Act casual. Lay it on thick about how you're relaxing and all that." Grissom advised. "You can't tell anyone. Not Nick. Not your Grandmother."
Looking a little upset about the fact, Warrick nodded. "I understand."
"Well, I guess it's time to introduce you to Gemma then" Gil gave a half-hearted smile.
Big blue eyes stared at Warrick nervously. The girl looked like crap. He didn't think her eyes were actually as huge as they seemed to be in her gaunt face. Her hair was an unnatural black, a very obscene black. The unreal shade only seemed to make her drawn face look paler. She had obviously dyed it in an attempt to disguise herself.
"We will have to fix that hair." Was the first thing Warrick said to her.
"I just dyed it!" She growled defensively.
"Yeah, that much is obvious. Could you make yourself stand out any more?" Warrick picked up a dark lock and frowned. "You might as well wear a neon sign that says 'I'm trying to be someone I'm not!"
Seeing that the two were already about to fight, Gil stepped in, trying to help. He had already mentally cringed at the hideous hair color. "I know someone who can fix it up."
"No, we can't have any more connections to you." Warrick shook his head. "I can deal with the hair."
"No more connections?" Gemma looked at Gil in fear. "What does he mean by that?"
"He means, you're not to be around me anymore. It's not safe." Gil explained, putting his arm around the young woman. Warrick looked on, in shock; Gil Grissom did not voluntarily touch anyone. "You're going with him and you'll be in hiding."
"With him?" Anger and shock seemed to be mingled in her gasp.
"He's the only one I trust with you." Gil stated as if talking about the weather. Gemma studied Warrick with an odd, distrustful expression on her face. Warrick simply looked back, raising his brows in mock question.
Gemma let out a pained sigh and looked back to Gil. "Okay, if you think this is best."
"He will keep you safe." Gil promised, giving her a squeeze. "Go get your stuff."
"Now?"
"Yes Gemma. The sooner, the better." Gil gave her a hopeful little smile. Gemma didn't see the smile; she was busy glaring at Warrick with distrust. Warrick suddenly had a feeling that this girl was going to give him a run for the money. He wished he'd had more sleep, he would have enjoyed the challenge.